Blister packaging for small electronics goods is well known. One type of such display packaging consists of a pair of corrugated cardboard sheets joined together with a clear PVC plastic insert showing the product, and is popular with manufacturers and consumers. Consumers can see the product when contemplating a purchase, and for manufacturers the double cardboard layer package is rugged for protecting the product during shipping, and the sealed edges provide tamper resistance. See, for example, Nazari, U.S. Pat. No. 7,726,480.
There are environmental concerns with this popular type of packaging, however, as the cardboard and plastic portions are individually recyclable but must be separated for recycling. Even if designed to be separable, most consumers fail to make the effort. This is because the packaging is typically difficult to open and so consumers resort to using a knife or scissors to cut the plastic portion and extract the product, leaving the plastic and cardboard together upon disposal. Accordingly, a better package is needed for displaying the product in a tamperproof fashion and that is environmentally friendly, as well as inexpensive to make.
Another issue with blister packaging for consumer products, having two sheets of corrugated cardboard and a clear plastic container sandwiched between them, is that this type of conventional packaging uses hot melt glue typically applied by hand and difficult to control due to the drying time and placement of the glue. Also, the corrugated sheets of the cardboard are visible on the side edges of the finished packaging which is aesthetically unappealing.
Other conventional blister packaging uses one sheet of corrugated cardboard and one or two flat sheet of paper, adhered together by adhesive. Since only one cardboard sheet is used, this type of packaging sometimes lacks sufficient structural strength when multiple display packs are stood on their sides in a container. When the weight of the top package is supported directly by the packs in the bottom bundle, they must have sufficient structural strength and rigidity to prevent them from bending.
Folding cardboard boxes are known in the art, including folding display cardboard boxes made of a single cardboard sheet. Displays of these types of packages may be stacked, but are typically hung on pegs or similar display structures for ease of installation and retrieval by users. One benefit of hanging packaging of this type is that a handle may be incorporated into the package, allowing a user to easily carry it after purchase, obviating the need for a bag.
One example of this type of packaging was disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/869,867 for a Display Cardboard Folded Package with Periphery Sealed Edges, of which this application is a continuation-in-part. A manufacturing benefit of such packaging is that it can be easily constructed from a single cardboard sheet. Although formed by a single sheet, product packaging must be able to function as an attractive container for a product prior to purchase, and should ideally be able to serve as a container for a product for storage and other purposes alter purchase.
Notably, the handle portion of this type of folding packaging, frequently becomes superfluous once the package is brought home from a store. Additionally, the handle makes the package difficult to manage since it presents a physical obstacle when trying to organize or arrange multiple packages tightly together. For this reason, there is a need for a folding display package made from a single sheet of cardboard, which has a handle for displaying and carrying the package, but which also may be removed to form a conventionally shaped box.